


Lost Stars

by I_Write_Tragedies_Not_Sins



Category: Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, F/F, F/M, Humor, M/M, Multi, No Coma AU, Queer Themes, Sci-Fi tropes and references, polyship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2018-04-05
Packaged: 2019-04-18 02:33:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14203167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/I_Write_Tragedies_Not_Sins/pseuds/I_Write_Tragedies_Not_Sins
Summary: Andromeda. A new beginning for the Ryder twins. Jolene is hoping to escape her pain at losing someone she loves and Daniel just wants to explore a new galaxy. When something goes wrong, they're forced to set aside their differences and work together to save their people. But when they can't agree on how to do it, the rift between them starts to grow.A no coma AU that features the POV of both Ryder twins as they go through the events in game. How will having both Ryder twins awake change things?





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> I originally wrote this for the MEBB but realized I wouldn't be able to complete such a long project in time so I'm posting it now, chapter by chapter. This is my first real attempt at mixing humour with angst, and there are a lot of sci-fi references sprinkled throughout. Some are obvious, some are more subtle. I would love feedback on this project! Let me know what references you notice, whether or not the humor is actually funny, if anything makes you feel sad or angry or any emotion. It will be an eventual polyship for the Female Ryder, but there won't be much smut in it (if any at all) because I'm not really a smut writer. The poly relationship bits are based on my own experiences. Nothing wrong with threesomes or group sex, but you won't find that here, just in case you were looking for it. I'm posting the first few chapters all at once but expect fairly regular updates after that! :D Happy reading!

Jolene’s heart races in her chest, pounding like gunfire from an M134 Minigun. She traces a finger down Keri’s cheek, breathing in the warm spicy scent of her girlfriend. “I don’t like this,” she mumbles, looking into the asari’s bright blue eyes. 

Keri grins, a half twist of her lips. “It’ll be fine, love. You worry too much. Where’s your sense of adventure?”

Jolene looks at the cryostasis beds with a cynical twist of her lips. “Mostly? It’s here in the Milky Way, not six hundred years away in some uncharted who-knows-what.”

“You’re cute when you’re being grumpy,” Keri teases, pressing a quick kiss to Jolene’s lips. “Besides, this will give you a chance to reconnect with your brother and dad, won’t it? It’ll be fine, you’ll see. Andromeda will the perfect start over for us.”

Jolene looks down at the toes of her boots, pain like a giant fist clenching at her heart. A new start. Away from the Milky Way and all the memories that go with it.

_ “Kirrahe!” Jolene screams his name, blood pouring from her mouth in thick, hot rivulets that taste like copper.  _

_ She scrambles to reach him, just a little further, almost there... She reaches out her hand and her fingers brush against his… _

_ A scream rips itself from her throat as his hand explodes under a hail of bullets. Green blood soaks the ground as he tries to smile up at her. “Jolene, go now. I’m not going to make it. Go, before it’s too late,” he whispers, his voice ragged with pain. _

_ She shakes her head, pulling him close to her. “I can’t leave you,” she replies, tears mixing with the blood on her face.  _

_ It wasn’t supposed to be like this. It was supposed to be a romantic trip, just the two of them, until the batarians attacked. _

_ Kirrahe coughs, blood coating his lips. “If you stay, you’ll die. Keri can’t lose us both,” he says, reaching his remaining hand up to stroke her cheek. “Please,” he adds, that soft tenderness he uses only around her seeping through his voice. _

Jo shakes her head, pushing the memories back until all she sees is Keri’s face in front of her. “I guess I’m just worried something will happen. What if we don’t wake up? Or what if we do wake up, but we didn’t make it to Andromeda?” The idea of being stuck in black space sends a cold shiver down her spine. 

Keri kisses her again, a soft smile curling her lips. “You worry too much. Once we get to Andromeda, you’ll put all this negative thinking behind you.”

“I don’t like us being on different ships,” Jo adds, running her fingers through her short, black locks. “I-”

Keri cuts her off with another kiss, this one longer, her tongue slipping past Jo’s lips. She tastes of cinnamon, spicy and sweet all at once, and Jo returns the kiss with all the passion she holds inside. When Keri finally pulls back, leaving Jo gasping for breath, the asari reporter leans her forehead against hers.

“I love you, you know that, don’t you? We’ll be fine. I just know it,” Keri whispers, their fingers locked together. “Everything will be better, once we’re in Andromeda.” She makes it sound like a promise.

Jolene watches as Keri is placed inside her stasis pod, her eyelids fluttering closed as the pod is whisked away. Her heart clenches in pain. What if this is the last time she sees her? What if she dies, just like Kirrahe, and there’s nothing Jolene can do to save her?

She takes a deep breath, steadying herself. She can’t think like that. It’ll be fine. It  _ has _ to be fine. Her feet carry her toward where her own stasis pod is, on a ship they’re calling  _ The Hyperion _ . She can see her brother standing just outside the ship, his long black hair pulled back into a messy twist at the nape of his neck. 

She forces a smile and waves at Daniel. How long has it been? She hasn’t seen him since mom’s death. And before that? He stopped talking to her when she left the Alliance.

_ “You’re leaving? You can’t just quit the Alliance because of a broken heart, Jo!” Daniel says, slamming his fist on the counter. _

_ Jo narrows her eyes, glaring at her twin. “You don’t understand, Danny. You don’t understand what it feels like to watch someone you love die like that!” _

_ “So you’re giving up? That won’t bring Kirrahe back,” he replies, placing a hand on her shoulder. “What was it he used to say? Something about holding the line?”\ _

_ She shrugs him off, eyes still narrowed. “Shut up. Shut UP! You don’t know him, don’t say his words like you understand!” She screams the words, pain and rage swirling around in her chest so deep it feels like a knife in her heart. _

_ Daniel backs away, shaking his head. “Ryders never give up, Jo,” he says. _

_ She turns her back to him, throwing her dog tags on the floor. “This one does.” _

Daniel waves back, his grin so wide it seems to bridge the gap between them, as if he had forgotten their fight. Probably had, if Jo’s being honest. Her brother was never known for his... social awareness.

Jolene frowns as their dad joins Daniel, his lined and aging face betraying no emotion. Just like always. 

“Hey, pathfinder. What’s shaking?” she asks, keeping her tone casual, light, a direct opposite of her dad’s stoicism. 

Daniel rolls his eyes. “You could show a little respect, Jo,” he says, but their dad shakes his head.

“Let’s not fight,” he says, smiling over at Jolene. “I’m just glad my little girl decided to join us in Andromeda afterall.” 

This time it’s Jolene who rolls her eyes. “I’m not your little girl anymore,” she replies. She knows her mother wouldn’t like her talking to dad that way, but all the resentment and anger at years of being ignored in favour of his work boil up inside her, taking root in the darkest corners of her heart. 

“I haven’t been for a long time, but you wouldn’t know that, would you?” 

She boards the ship without a backward glance, stealing herself for what’s to come. Stasis won’t be so bad, right? It’ll be just like sleeping. A really, really long nap. And when she wakes up, she can join Keri on the Nexus. Maybe settle down, have a family. 

Yeah. It’ll be fine, once they’re in Andromeda. 

And this time, it sounds like a prayer.


	2. Chapter One

Air enters her lungs like a punch to the chest as she wakes up, all her thoughts hitting her simultaneously.  _ Andromeda. _  They must have made it. Jo hopes, anyway. The nagging doubt that they somehow became trapped in dark space pricks her mind but she pushes it back down.

It’s too late to turn back, no matter where they are.

She sits up, all of her muscles sore from the journey. Frozen for six hundred years. She shivers at the passage of time. Jolene looks around, taking in the cool metal bulkheads of the ship. Her heartbeat begins to race. She wonders if they’ll reach the Nexus first, or their golden world.  _ Habitat Seven.  _ Their new home.

Jolene extends her arms, stretching the stiff muscles. Her neck cracks as she twists it to the side. Tea. That’s what she needs. A nice, hot cup of well caffeinated tea.

“Another Ryder, is it? Part of the Pathfinder crew, right?”

She looks up, startled to hear a voice. She can feel  a small smile curving the edges of her lips. “Everything okay out there?” she asks, trying not to sound worried. Casual, Jo. Just act casual.

The young woman looks over at the man standing next to her. “Seems like it. We’re nearly home,” she says. “Your brother’s awake. Just over there, in the medbay. Come on, he’s been asking after you.”

Jolene nods, slowly getting to her feet. She wobbles, the room spinning before her eyes, and the older man grabs her arm. His fingers are firm and strong, holding tight against her elbow. “Maybe some coffee, while we’re at it?”

Jo grins as she walks forward. “Tea. Earl Grey. Hot,” she says, a small giggle bubbling on her lips.

The man shrugs. “I don’t think we have any tea right now. Most of the stuff is still in storage. We’ve got coffee. Black. Lukewarm.”

She sighs, nose crinkling at the thought of coffee. Especially black coffee. Oh well. Sacrifices must be made. “Yeah, guess that’ll have to do,” she replies, looking up as she enters the medbay.

She sits down on one of the beds, looking over at the holographic images on the wall. A woman’s voice carries to her ears but she tunes it out, focusing on the slightly burnt coffee in her cup. Her thoughts drift to Keri as an asari doctor directs her eyes first to the left, and then to the right.

“Hey,” a voice says, startling her out  of her thoughts.

Jolene looks up, grinning a little when she sees Daniel. “Hey, little brother. Good to see a familiar face around.”

He smiles back, and she knows him well enough to recognize the relief in his eyes at her light tone. “I can’t believe we made it,” he admits. “I’m feeling excited though. Aren’t you?” he asks, voice hopeful.

She shrugs. “Maybe, a little,” she concedes.

It’s a lie though. She’s not excited. A bit relieved that they made it, but mostly on edge. Nervous. Body tense and humming with energy. She wants to move, to break out of this sitting and waiting bullshit. She needs something to do. She hates sitting around, doing nothing.

She’s just waiting for the other shoe to drop, for something to go wrong. She knows she won’t really feel at ease until she sees Keri and the Nexus and knows that they truly found home. “I hope there’s a lake. I miss sailing,” Jo adds.

Mostly she misses seeing Keri in a bathing suit, if she’s being honest with herself.

Daniel nods his head, a smile spreading wide across his face. “I just hope something’s here for me to study,” he says, pushing the small glasses further up the bridge of his nose. His contacts must still be in storage she figures, along with her tea. “Maybe long dead civilizations? A galaxy that holds so many golden worlds has to have life in it somewhere.”

“You and your pottery studies,” she quips, grinning as she watches him frown.

He crosses his arms across his chest. “There’s more to archeology than studying pottery, noona,” he replies, tone clearly miffed.

She fakes a yawn. “Coulda fooled me, Danny,” she says.

The asari doctor lets out a low chuckle. “Alright, you two. Let’s check out your SAM implants, alright?” She clicks a few tabs on her omnitool, a small smile on her face. “SAM, are you online?”

SAM’s voice is loud and clear, and the doctor’s smile grows wider as the AI speaks. “Yes, Dr. T'Perro.”

Daniel frowns a little as he unbraids his long hair. “I’m not sure I like having an AI in my head,” he says. “No offense, SAM.”

“Uncertainty is to be expected. The AIs of the past have been different. Our relationship will be a truly beneficial one for us all,” SAM replies.

It’s voice is clean, methodical, and with no infliction or emotion behind it. Jolene can’t help but wonder if it’s right, or if this really was a horrible idea of her father’s.

A loud crash shakes the entire ship, lights flickering in and out as people scream. “I don’t think I like the sound of that,” Jolene says, standing up, heart in her throat as her stomach drops.

_ It’s happening. _

The something wrong that she’s been anticipating is finally happening, just like she knew it would. Gravity goes out and she begins to float, body weightless as a cryopod comes racing toward her head. She tries to move, to get out of the way in time, but it still manages to clip her shoulder as a sharp pain shoots its way down her arm.

Her eyes dart around in a wild dance trying to find her brother. She spots him, floating nearby. His hair is crimped from the braid, like pools of wavy ink set adrift in the air. He pushes his glasses farther up his nose again, face crinkled as he turns his head this way and that, looking around at the flickering lights.

“This is interesting,” he mutters. “I wonder if this is how ancient sea voyagers felt when the waters were calm.”

Jo rolls her eyes. “Danny, focus. We need to-”   


Her sentence is cut off when a blonde woman comes through the door, gripping the wall as she speaks. “Cora Harper. Brace for a hard reset.”

Gravity hits Jolene like a tram car as she comes crashing down. She winces as the pain in her shoulder increases from the impact, a steady and sharp throbbing sensation along the muscles. It could be worse. She could be dead.

They could all be dead.

She barely hears Harper as she tells them their dad wants them armoured up as they check the planet out. She lets Dr. T’Perro patch up her shoulder, tuning out the sights and sounds around her. She puts on her gear on autopilot, each move fluid and practiced.

Jolene smiles at her weapon’s locker, though. The briefest flicker of lips twitching in an upward curl as she strokes her fingers across her Viper sniper rifle. It’d been modified to suit her smaller hands, and fired like a dream. She closes her eyes, remembering the feel of it as she fired at pyjaks and rattlesnakes for practice in between guarding her brother on his Prothean digs. A couple of pistols on each leg and she’s ready to go, body humming with nervous energy. She bounces from foot to foot, rolling her shoulders and taking short, deep breaths.

Her focus narrows to the sound of armoured feet, clank clank on the Hyperion deck. Voices argue but it’s distant, far off and faded. Her father gives a speech. Deep voice full of conviction and pride. He’s always been good at speeches.

Jolene’s heart skips a beat as Daniel boards the shuttle with Cora and their dad, a different shuttle than the one she’s riding. Her own shuttlemates chatter as they descend toward the planet. Lower and lower. Their golden world. New Earth.  _ It’ll be a paradise, Jo. You’ll see. _

Keri’s voice echoes in her mind. Whispers from six hundred years ago as fresh as if they were spoken yesterday. The weight of time lays on her shoulders as she realizes how far they are from anything they know. This is it. It has to be para-

In an instant, the side of the shuttle is gone, lost to the raging storm around them. She grips the handrails, her heart like thunder in her ears. “Ryder,” Liam screams above the noise. His hand slips and she instinctively reaches for it.

“Stretch your arm,” she replies, shouting to be heard above the roaring wind and engine.

His fingers brush against hers and she grabs hold, straining to pull him in. Another gust of wind rips him to the left and her hand slips from the rail.

_ I’m falling. _

Hard to breath past the fear. Jump jet. Why isn’t the jump jet working? Don’t want to die like this. Can’t die. Not until I see our golden world. Not until I see Keri.

Not until…

_ Engaging  _ **_safety protocol_ **

  
  


~*~*~

  
  


Electricity crackles around Daniel’s shuttle as they come crashing down toward the planet. His heart is in his throat, beating like an overclocked engine as his thoughts race around his head at lightning speed, mirroring the flashes outside his window. What’s happening? Who built all this? Are there people here? What are they like?

And then all the questions leave him as they hit the planet, the sheer force of the crash knocking any coherent thoughts out of his head as he scrambles for purchase in a rough and alien terrain. His body throbs with pain. Sharp and steady like his pulse. Proof he’s still alive. Thank his lucky stars for that one.

He gets to his feet, favouring his right ankle a little. Looking around, he quickly spots Cora and his father, already on their feet and discussing the next course of action. Daniel lets out a slow sigh. His father’s alive, and with him and Cora, he feels reassured of their chances. There’s no way their father can fail.

Not Alec Ryder, war hero and proud N7. No, he was certain that with his dad’s keen sense of survival and Cora’s strength, they’ll be fine.

Slowly, he makes his way toward them, nodding at Harry as he passes a piece of the shuttle. The doctor’s eyes are suddenly haggard as he sits on a rock, and Daniel worries that the strain might be too much him.  Hayes paces in a tight line, limping badly as she frowns. Daniel can tell she’s muttering to herself, but can't hear what she’s saying.

“We need to look at those alien structures,” he says as he joins his dad and Cora.

Cora raises an eyebrow at him. “We have more important matters to attend to, like getting off this planet alive. I can fix the shuttle, but it’ll take awhile.”

“Those structures could tell us what happened to this planet, and maybe how to fix it,” Daniel replies, crossing his arms. “Fixing the shuttle is important, too, but we’ll never get it off the ground if we don’t stop these storms.”

His father has a small frown on his face. “SAM, where’s my daughter and the other crew members?”

“I cannot locate them right now. They seem to be…. Offline.”

Daniel’s eyes widen. “Offline? What does that even mean? Are they dead?”

His pulse flutters madly against his throat. His twin can’t be dead. Not after it took so much to get her to come with. It had been fortunate that T’Vessa was a good reporter and had wanted to go, anyway. Daniel knew it was the only way to convince Jo to leave the Milky Way.

If she dies now, after all that… He doesn’t want to lose her, too. Not after mom.

He just wants them all to be together.

“I do not know, Dr. Ryder. They have been disconnected from the SAM network.”

“Don't worry, son. Your sister’s strong. She’ll make it,” Alec says, his tone full of assurance.

He nods his head, and reaches a hand up to push his glasses up the bridge of his nose. His finger hits the hard, clear surface of his helmet and he frowns, remembering he was fully suited up. He curses the fact that his contacts wouldn’t have survived the cryo process, and were still locked away, out of his reach, in storage. Because of course they are.

Cora chokes back a laugh. She clears her throat, lips twitching. “Sir, I’m ready to get to work on the shuttle,” she says, standing straighter as she addresses his father.

Alec nods and she rushes over to the busted shuttle, body set in a hard, determined line.

Daniel turns, looking out across the strange landscape. “New earth. This is home, huh? Looks like we’re six hundred and thirty-four years too late, huh, dad?”

Alec Ryder doesn’t answer him. His gaze is elsewhere, looking off at something Daniel can’t see. The lines on his face are weathered, small signs that age can catch up even with heros.

Daniel’s throat is dry, scratchy. He wishes he had some water. He pushes away the flickering thoughts that his sister had been right about coming here.

No, they made the right choice. A whole new galaxy to explore. Countless worlds to discover. “SAM, how’s that scanner working?” he asks, looking over at the strange architecture again.

“You’re thinking of going over there and getting some readings, aren’t you?” His father asks, and Daniel can hear the frown in his voice.

He nods, chewing his bottom lip. “Yeah, I want to know what it is. I want to know if the people who built it are still alive.”

Alec grunts in reply, silent a moment before finally speaking. “Could be hostile.”

Daniel shrugs his shoulders as he turns to grin at his father. “Or they could know where Jo is, or how to survive here, or maybe even how to leave and find the Nexus.” He claps his hands together, pulse speeding up as excitement thrills through him.

This is why he came here. Welcome to Andromeda.

We made it.

“Always the optimist. You’re right. The mission comes first.” Alec claps him on the shoulder. “Ready, son?”

Daniel nods. “Always.”   
  


 

~*~*~

  


Panic rips through Jo’s body like a wildfire. Can’t breathe. Lungs burning, gasping. Please let the omni tool work.

It works, by some good fortune. She closes her eyes, lips moving in silent prayer to the gods. She’s alive.

A dark thought crosses her mind: they should be dead.

  


~*~*~

  


“Cora, Dr. Ryder and I will be scouting ahead; I’m leaving you in command,” Alec says.

She nods her head, still focusing on the shuttle. “Yes, sir. I’ll have her fixed by the time you get back.”

It feels strange, following behind his father, the  _ pathfinder,  _ on a mission in a different galaxy. It’s different than back home. Back then, it was just him and his sister and her team on missions, mostly archeological digs. She was always the head of their squad. The soldier. Always restless and bored. Frustrated the hell out of him back then, but he’d give anything to hear her complain about leaving the Milky Way 'just to look at alien pottery', now.

“We’re close,” his father says, voice lowered to a soft whisper.

Daniel grins, using the modified scope on the end of his pistol to look at the structure in more detail. Smooth lines. Dark metals. He makes quick mental notes of every detail he can make out as he moves the view down to the base of the... whatever it was.

His heartbeat quickens as his eyes catch something they hadn’t been expecting, not really. For all their talk of hostiles or alien contact, the reality of it was something else. Daniel takes in the armour and weapons, trying to make out details of their strange, bony faces.

He can hear his father talking to Jolene over the comm. Good. She’s alive. “Dad, I think we’re about to make alien contact,” he calls out over his shoulder.

Palms sweaty, he puts his pistol away and raises both hands in what he hopes is a multi-galaxy symbol for _  ‘we come in peace, please don’t shoot’ _ . “Uh, hi, I’m Dr. Daniel Ryd-”

Gun fire stops his greeting mid sentence as he screams, throwing himself backward behind cover.

Well, that went over well.

  
  


~*~*~

  


“Cora?” Jo’s heart flips. “Where’s my brother and father?”

Cora raises as an eyebrow as she joins them. “They went scouting on ahead. I almost had the shuttle fixed and these… whatever they are attacked us.”

She curses. Of course they went on ahead without backup. Dad was an N7. He was used to that. And Daniel was used to following somebody’s lead. Dammit.

“SAM? Can you patch me through to the Pathfinder?”

“Yes, Ryder.”

  
  


*~*~*

  
  


Daniel paces back and forth in a hard line. He can feel his eye twitching. Why did his father leave him behind? Why is he staying outside the structure while his sister goes with? It doesn’t make sense. Ancient anything is  _ his _  area of expertise. No Jo’s. He should  _ be _  there.

He turns around to go inside, face set in determination. He can hear a light crackling from the comms as he takes a step forward.

“We need an emergency extraction.” To the average person, Alec Ryder’s voice would sound the same calm, even tone as ever. But Daniel can hear the rising panic is father’s voice, and his own heart quickens in turn. “I repeat, we need an emergency extraction, now!”

Cora’s eyes widen but she doesn’t falter. “They’re spinning up the shuttle. ETA three, maybe four minutes. “

Daniel swallows against the fear lumped in his throat like soggy oatmeal. “Dad are you-”

“We don’t have that long,” he replies.

No.

No, that can’t be right. “Hurry the hell up with that shuttle,” Daniel yells into the comms. He can taste bile in the back of his throat as he tries not to throw up. This can’t be happening.

“Daniel, I- Your sister’s going to be okay,” his dad says, voice softer than Daniel’s heard it since mom died.

His knees hit the ground before he realizes he’s falling. Six hundred and thirty-four years. That’s how long it took for another member of his family to die. Six hundred and thirty-four years. All that time, and all that distance, just for his dad to die on a hostile planet. Heroes weren’t supposed to die like this.

Andromeda was supposed to be a new beginning, not the end.


	3. Chapter Two

Jolene’s hands shake as she watches _The Nexus_ come into view. They’re here. It doesn’t matter that the lights are out. This is where Keri is. Where she can finally have a sense of normalcy again.

_He died for you._

She pushes the thought away, shoves it far, far back in her mind. No. She can’t think about her father’s death. It doesn’t matter. She embraces the numbness toward it, and toward becoming Pathfinder, the same way she embraces her excitement to see Keri. She can only feel the safe emotions. She can’t fall apart. There’s too much at stake, now.

Daniel stands at her side, a worried frown on his face. She can see Liam’s lips moving but his voice seems distant, far away. It’s hard to focus. She grabs her sniper rifle and holds it against her chest. It’s heavy in her hands and the weight of it makes her feel safe, even if she knows it to be an illusion. There’s no safety, not while some strange alien race wants them all dead.

_Like your father._

_Like mom._

“Alight, let’s suit up, team,” she says, trying on the role of leader. It feels strange, like a jumper that's too small. Tight, and hot, itchy against her skin. She doesn’t like it. “Cora, Liam, Dr. Ryder, I want you three suited and armed by the time we’re docked.”

Does she sound like him? Firm, like there’s no room for argument but in a way that makes you want to agree. Steady.

She takes a deep breath as they step foot on _The Nexus_. Her heart falls as they step from empty room to empty room. Where is everyone? She leaves her brother and the squad by the Aveena as Daniel continues to ask it questions. His curiosity never fails him, not matter the situation, and she’s not surprised to see it’s the same way in Andromeda.

A sound catches her attention, is that breathing? Where? She turns her head, a sharp jerk in each direction as she slowly makes her way around a clutter of crates. She can see a turian standing there, gun in hand, while a technician works on some nearby paneling.

She steps from the shadows, sniper rifle on her back and a heavily modified pistol in her hand. It’s heavier than most, packs a bigger punch, too. Almost like a shotgun, but smaller.

Her precious _Peacekeeper._ Daniel told her she was weird for naming her guns, but how else’s a person supposed to bond with their weapon? She smiles, holding the pistol in what she hopes isn’t a threatening posture, both relieved to see them and worried.

“Hello. I’m….” She pauses, the words hesitating behind her tongue. “I’m Pathfinder Ryder of the human arc, and that's my team,” she says, jamming a thumb over her shoulder.

The technician startles, spinning around so fast that he drops his tools. The clang of metal on metal rings in the air, a sharp sound followed by silence.

The turian steps closer, fingers curling around his rifle. “A pathfinder? And an arc? We thought you were all dead…”

Jo’s eyes widen. “Dead? No, we’re alive. Mostly. Where are the other arcs? What’s going on?”

The human technician clears his throat as he bends to get his tool. “You wouldn’t know, would you? About the kett, or the mutiny, or anything.”

She tries to work out what he’s saying. Kett... Those must be the hostile aliens. But a mutiny? Was Keri involved? What side did she take? Is she okay?

“Come on, I’ll take you to see the others. They’ll want to know,” the turian says. “I’m Kandros, by the way.”

 

~*~*~

 

Daniel leans against a wall, a frown pulling at the edges of his mouth. This wasn’t at all what he’d expected of _the Nexus._ It was supposed to be their _Citadel._ He pushes his glasses back up again, a sigh escaping his lips. Shit. This was a giant pile of varren shit. But without any actual varrens.

“SAM?”

“Yes, Dr. Ryder?” It’s voice is clear, methodical, but somehow different than before. As if there was a hint of curiosity behind it.

“Did you look over the scans I took of the aliens and the tech?” He reaches up to tuck a strand of his long hair behind his ear, chewing his bottom lip as he thinks. Cora and his sister were meeting with the _Nexus_ leadership. He had time to work on a puzzle or two.

“Yes. I’ll need more information before I can form any theories,” SAM replies. There it is again. That note of emotion, this time it almost sounds like disappointment?

Daniel sighs. “Of course. What about the Nexus? What do you know about it?”

“When completed, The Nexus will be 15.47km long. Anchorage wheel diameter is 5.3km. Current Stat-”

“That’s enough, SAM. I already know all that,” Daniel says, pinching the bridge of his nose. “SAM-”

His words are cut off as a streak of blue slams into him, Keri’s eyes wide and frantic. “Where’s Jolene?” she asks. Her voice, which was normally calm and polished, is panicked and upset.

He smiles down at her, though he knows it feels a little forced. “She’s in there, with leadership. She’s alive,” he replies. _Unlike dad._

Keri sags against him in relief, taking a few slow, deep breaths before pulling away. “Thank the Goddess,” she says, smiling. “I thought the arcs were lost, or destroyed.”

Daniel nods, a frowning tugging at his lips. “Keri, what the hell happened here? They said Jien Garson is dead? Our people are seperated?”

Her lip wavers as she stands there, wringing her hands. “It’s been awful. I wasn’t awake when Jien Garson died. When I woke up, all of the original leaders were dead. And so were their replacements.“

Keri takes another deep breath, tears collecting in her eyes, but somehow she holds them back. Squaring her shoulders, she steadies her voice through some force of will Daniel doesn’t understand. “We tried to make a home here, but we screwed up. Two outposts failed, and people wanted answers. It was… So many families are separated. I promised Jo we’d start over here, but everything is dying, instead.”

Daniel pinches the bridge of his nose again, trying to make sense of everything. “Where’s Sloane Kelley? She was supposed to in charge of Security; she wouldn’t have let this madness happen.”

Please, don’t let her be dead, too, he prays. He remembers Sloane Kelley, from before they left the Milky Way. She was tough, a little brisk, but a good head on her shoulders. Plus, she taught him how to shoot better.

_“You never know when you might need your gun, Danny,” Sloane says, grinning as she leans against a wall._

_“We’re not going to Andromeda to fight,” he replies, narrowing his eyes in concentration as he holds his pistol, finger on the trigger. “And I know you moved the target farther away,” he adds._

_She snorts, a short bark of laughter following it. “Yeah? You’re probably right. Still, never hurts to learn. And don’t lock your elbow. Relax.”_

She reminds him of Jolene, before Kirrahe died.

Keri blinks up at him. “Sloane Kelley? She lead the mutiny. She betrayed us,” she replies.

He stumbles back a bit, heart in his throat. It doesn’t make sense. Nothing here makes any goddamn sense. He clenches his fists together, closing his eyes. A hand clamps down on his shoulder and he opens his eyes to see Cora.

“You alright, Dr. Ryder?”

He shakes his head. “No, but who is?” He sighs, trying not to give into the growing sense of hopelessness fluttering in the air. “Where’s Jo?”

“Hey, little brother. Worried you’d be left out?” Jo teases as she joins them, a smirk twisting her lips.

“You really made it,” Keri breathes.

Daniel steps back out of the way as Jo turns her head, eyes widening when she sees the reporter. Keri’s grin seems to light up the room for a second with how big and bright it is as she laughs, throwing herself into his sister’s arms and kissing her.

Liam clears his throat, a small grin on his face. “Good to see something normal after all this mess,” he says. “But, uh, awkward much?”

Cora groans and rolls her eyes. “Real mature, Liam,” she replies.

Daniel shakes his head, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. “Alright, so do we have a plan?”

Jolene nods, a small smile on her lips that make her eyes crinkle. She’s still holding onto Keri, who has her arms wrapped around Jo’s waist and her cheek pressed against her shoulder. “Yeah. You and Cora and going to help Kesh with a few things. I- I have to talk with SAM. We have some downtime, so do whatever it is you people want to do on your downtime,” she answers.

Downtime? He looks around. So much clutter and empty spaces. It looks kind of spooky, without the lights on. What was he supposed to do now?

 

~*~*~

 

_“Alec, your recommendations will never fly. Artificial intelligence?”_

_His feet are sore inside his boots. He wants to go home, see his wife. Chest aches. Ellen has to be okay._

_“It’s our best option,” he replies, a sigh following the final word._

_His heart is racing beneath his chest. Palms sweaty on the table. He hides it all with a stoic expression._

_The answers no. Again. They fear what they don’t understand. They can’t see the potential in what artificial intelligence could be, could help them to be._

_“Alec?”_

_He turns his chair to face the screen. Her face is staring back at him. He feels his heart skip a beat at the sight. “Ellen.” He says her name softly; he misses her more than he can say aloud. “What did the doctor say?”_

_She has to be okay._

_She looks down. “He told me to appreciate the time I have left.”_

_His heart sinks, fear making his mouth go dry. No. “There’s no cure, Alec. It’s terminal.”_

_No._

_“Not on my watch.”_

Jolene’s head spins as she tries to focus on where’s she’s at. Where _is_ she? Oh, right, SAM node. “SAM?” She asks, needing to hear something not inside her head.

“Yes, Pathfinder? Are you alright? Your heart rate is higher than normal.”

She nods, touching the solid metal walls of the room and taking slow, shallow breaths. “Yeah, I’m fine, SAM. Gods, but that felt so real. How many more memories are in there, did you say?”

“I cannot access that information.”

Of course not. Jo sighs, leaning her forehead against the cold walls. Alright. Downtime, right? Maybe, if she spends some time with Keri, she’ll feel better. She pushes her father’s memory as far back as she can. The emotions had felt so real that it’s hard to seperate them from her own. So she shuts it down entirely. Space. That’s all she needs is a little space and time to distance herself from it. To remember herself again. Maybe then her mother’s death won’t feel so raw in her chest.

She knocks on Keri’s apartment door. She wishes there had been flowers to buy or something, but nothing was really set up yet. Jolene tugs at her outfit, impatient to see her girlfriend.

“Hey, sorry it took me so long,” Keri says as she opens the door.

Jolene inhales as she takes in the golden brown dress Keri’s wearing, all soft and light and beautiful against the asari’s deep blue skin. “Keri,” she says, whispering her name.

She blushes, cheeks turning a light shade of purple as Jolene steps into the tiny apartment. Keri looks around, frowning at the clutter. “Sorry, it’s been-”

Jolene cuts her off with a kiss, her hand cupping Keri’s freckled cheek. She smells of fresh spring flowers, airy and yet somehow warm. Jo pulls her closer, fingers clutching at the asari’s shoulders.

“I love you,” Jo whispers, tucking Keri under her chin. She holds her as tight as she can, breathing in her scent as she tries to calm her fast beating heart.

Keri’s alive. She survived the mutiny and what they’re calling the Scourge. This whole nightmare doesn’t feel real but right now, with Keri’s heart beating against Jo’s chest, things finally feel solid again. Even if it’s just for this moment.

They tumble to the bed, a tangle of limbs and lips and hurried kisses. She’s home. It doesn’t matter that they’re six hundred years away from the Milky Way. Here, with Keri, she’s home.

“I love you,” she says again, murmuring the words before grazing her teeth against the asari’s nipple.

Keri moans in response, arching her back. “I love you, too,” she whispers back, voice featherlight and breathless.

Jo continues kissing trails down her stomach, mixing tongue and teeth to leave tiny little marks behind that have Keri writhing on the bed in pleasure.

She’s missed this. Being lost in the scent and taste of the person she loves. The way Keri’s moans fill her ears, making her own body squirm with need. The way it builds and builds, each touch rolling into the next, until it releases at the end.

Jolene’s body shakes as she nuzzles her nose against Keri’s throat. “I missed you,” she says, voice soft.

“You only just saw me a few moments ago,” she replies, trailing a shaky finger across Jo’s arm.

She huffs in response. “And before that, six hundred years.”

Keri laughs and the sound of it makes Jo’s heart flutter. “You were in cryo! You couldn’t have missed me during that time.”

Jolene sits up, leaning on her elbow. She boops her finger on Keri’s nose, smiling. “I did, too! Didn’t you miss me? Should I be hurt?” she teases.

“Don’t you dare,” Keri says, laughing as she rolls Jo onto her back. “You are such a brat sometimes.”

Jolene pulls her down for another kiss. “If it’s only sometimes, then maybe I’m not trying hard enough.”

Keri rolls her eyes. “You try plenty,” she assures her, a small smile on her face. “Oh! Before I forget, I snuck this in with my equipment. Here,” she says, reaching over to the small nightstand.

“What’s…. Oh, you brought my music collection?” Jolene smiles. “Thank you.”

Keri shrugs, kneeling above Jo, both still naked. “It fit inside my camera bag. Got most of your favourites on there. Some _One-Eyed Doll, Jack Off Jill, Rasputina…_ All that weird, old earth music you listen to.”

Jo perks up. “ _Poe_?” she asks, hopeful.

Keri nods, leaning down. “Of course,” she says.  

Her lips are a breath away. Jolene closes the distance, gripping Keri’s waist in her other hand. _I love you._

 

~*~*~

 

Daniel takes a deep breath as he walks around their new ship, The Tempest. A turian woman named Vetra had given them a tour earlier, and he has to admit the ship is impressive. He’s not sure whether to be relieved that his ex, Gil Brodie, is their engineer, or if this is going to make for extremely awkward moments. At least he can rest assured that the ship is in good hands.

He hesitates a moment before heading down to the engine room. It’ll be nice to see a familiar face, even if they hadn’t exactly ended things on the best of terms.

Gil is bending over his workbench, brow furrowed in concentration. “Come on baby, we can do this,” he whispers, his accent still strong.

Daniel clears his throat. “Uh, hi,” he says. _Great. That didn’t sound lame at all, Danny. Well done._

Gil turns around, eyes widening a bit before he smiles. “Dan, what a coincidence we’re on the same ship, eh?”

Daniel shrugs, smiling a bit in return. “Yeah, guess so. Good to know the ship’s in the best hands,” he replies.

“I was going nuts on that station. You can’t know how jazzed I was when you showed up,” Gil says, leaning against his workbench.

Daniel snorts in reply. “Me? Or just glad a pathfinder team showed up?”

“Little bit of both, maybe,” Gil admits with a shrug. “I was itching to get this particular call Capital-R ready. Don’t tell Vetra, but the truth is I fudge reports to come in early, then bust ass in secret to make up for it.”

 _Yeah, sounds like the Gil Brodie I knew._ He remembers their last fight like it was yesterday. Daniel wanted permanence and stability. Gil never stopped moving; he had no real purpose in life. It still surprises him that his ex had wanted to come to Andromeda. Nothing more permanent than moving to a whole new galaxy across dark space.

“Just be careful, alright? Last thing we need is something going wrong with the ship,” Daniel replies, frowning.

Gil shrugs and turns back to his work. “You worry too much, Dan. I’ve got it all handled.” He pauses a moment. “I’m starting up a weekly poker tournament for the crew. You in?”

Daniel shakes his head before realizing Gil can no longer see him. “Ah, no, thanks. Poker was never my thing.”

“Yeah, you’ve always hated losing,” Gil quips with a chuckle. “Hey, how’s Jolie doing? Haven’t seen her in ages.”

The unspoken _‘since Kirrahe died’_ lays hanging in the air between them, heavy and dark like a cloud full of acid rain. Daniel closes his eyes, trying to remember his sister before Kirrahe’s death. She’d been so dedicated to the Alliance, and her job. Her pride was only matched by her quirky sense of humour which made it more bearable. Most of all, he remembers her thirst for adventure. Her zest for life. Now, she seems like a hollow husk left behind to shamble through life half-heartedly. A ghost of her former self. He misses who she used to be.

“She doesn’t really talk to me anymore,” he replies, leaving the truth buried under a half-lie. He can’t talk about their fight. About how angry they both had been. That was best left behind in the Milky Way. This is a new start. A new life. For all of them. “But I’m sure she’s as fine as ever.”

Gil grunts, shaking his head. “Can’t be easy on her, what with your dad dying and all that. Especially now that she’s pathfinder.”

Daniel shrugs, hedging his way toward the door. He doesn’t want to talk about that. His father’s death is still an open wound that he can’t stop from bleeding. He clenches his fists as a few tears unwittingly trickle down his face. “Yeah, right. Well, I, uh, have stuff I should be doing. Talk to you later, Gil,” he mumbles.

Gil waves absentmindedly over his shoulder, seemingly unaware of Daniel’s pain. As he walks toward where his bunk is, he thinks about his parents. They never saw much of their dad growing up, but each memory is like a precious gem in his heart.

_The wheels on the mechanical train spin slowly as it makes it way across the tracks. Daniel watches it with wide eyes, tiny hands clasped together. “Choo choo! Daddy, come play choo choo with me!”_

_Alec Ryder sighs from his desk, face buried behind paperwork. Ellen looks up from her spot on the couch and smiles. “Go on, love, your work can wait for a few moments. He won’t be this small forever.”_

_“Pweaaaaaase, daddy?” Daniel begs._

_Alec stands up, a small smile twisting his lips. “Alright, I suppose I have a few minutes to spare, son,” he says._

_Daniel cheers, clapping his hands with a big grin covering his face. “Daddy’s going to play choo choo!”_

Daniel sits down on his bed and buries his face in his hands as tears pour down his cheeks. _I miss you, dad. I don’t know if we can do this without you._


	4. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and feedback super appreciated! This is my first big Andromeda fic and I'd love to know what people think, if anyone is actually reading this. :D

Daniel frowns at his sister as they stand on the alien world the _Nexus_ has dubbed ‘Eos’. He can feel his irritation level rising, right along with the damn radiation. “You want me to what?”

Jo sighs, rolling her brown eyes at him. “Go investigate the Turian murder case with Cora while I do pathfinder shit,” she says, tone brisk and cold. She sounds like their father, but for some reason it annoys him instead of inspiring him.

“Pathfinder, leaving the confines of this area without a vehicle is inadvisable. The radiation would kill him,” SAM says.

Daniel blanches. “I’d, uh, rather not die by radiation poisoning,” he says.

Jo frowns. “Well, then how the fuck am I supposed to do anything? Fucking shit fuck.” She sighs, looking down at her omni tool. “Right, well there’s a signal coming from that way. Remind me to requisition a Mako or something from Tann. He’ll love that, I'm sure,” she continues, face pinched in a scowl.

Daniel watches as his sister wanders off, muttering to herself with Liam and Cora trailing close behind. He looks around at the small, confined area and takes a deep breath. At least he finally has his contacts out of storage, he figures, grabbing a notebook from his pack. Right. Time to take field notes.

He bites his lip as he scribbles details on the aging paper. _The ground is fuscous and covered in dry, hard sand. The landscape is largely empty, save for various alien fauna and deep canyons. The heat beats down on us like it’s angry we dare tread here. It’s almost beautiful, in a barren sort of way._

Daniel looks down at his notes. Well, that was a verbose way of saying _‘it’s a desert and it sucks.’_ His fingers itch to check out the alien architecture that SAM told them about. He wants to do something, anything, other than stand around his thumb up his ass. There's so much to study here, if they could just get to it...

“Danny, incoming kett, take cover,” his sister shouts as a strange shuttle descends toward them.

He looks up into the faces of the kett descending from the dropship, eyes widening as he tries not to panic. Shit. Shitshitshit. He ducks behind a large rock, reaching for his pistol. _I guess Sloane was right about needing this damn thing._ His chest feels tight as he fires, hoping like hell he manages to hit a few. He squints against the sunlight and fires again, wincing at the bullet pings his sister’s shields.

“Hey, I’m on your side, ass. Don’t fire that thing until you know where you’re aiming,” she shouts over shoulder, and he can hear her frustration.

“Sorry,” he mumbles, knowing she can’t hear him. He was never any good in a fight. He’d rather study something than shoot it. 

He waits behind the boulder, listening to the sound of gunfire. Please be over soon, he prays. The sudden silence makes him worried, though, as he sits with bated breath. Please tell me we won this one...

Jo’s face comes into view, a huge grin curving her lips. “It’s okay little brother, you can come out of hiding now.”

He frowns up at her as he gets to his feet. “Shut up. I wasn’t hiding. Exactly.”

“What would you call it, then?” she asks, tone teasing and playful.

Daniel pauses a moment. “Strategic planning,” he replies finally, crossing his arms over his chest.

Liam bursts into laughter, doubling over and holding his sides. “Oh, sorry, Dr. Ryder. Guess I needed a good laugh,” he says as he stands upright again.

“Glad I could assist,” Daniel replies dryly. _Jerk_ , he adds in his head.

Jo snickers, clapping Liam on the shoulder. “Glad to see you have a sense of humour, Kosta,” she says.

Daniel grumbles as he searches for his notebook in the sand. “I hate you both,” he mutters.

Jolene throws an arm around his shoulder. “What’s that, baby brother?” she teases. “You love me so much you can barely stand it?”

He snorts, shrugging her off as he dusts sand from his notebook. “Yeah, sure, that too.”

Jolene chuckles before turning to Liam and Cora. “Alright, Cora, this Nomad thing Gil keeps telling me about won’t fit us all. I want you to stay with the ship while we head out, alright?”

Cora nods briskly. "Got it, Ryder," she replies.

Daniel perks up. “Nomad? Is that anything like the Mako?”

His sister shrugs. “Dunno. Never driven one before.”

“Please let me drive,” he says, frowning. “Last time you drove a Mako, you nearly killed us all running off the side of a cliff.”

“It had jets!”

“Jolene, no, please don’t do this. I just had lunch and I’m not sure my stomach can handle your insanity.”

Jo shrugs, clapping him on the back. “You’ll be fine. Besides, I’m the path _finder_. I have to find a path! And drive it!”

Daniel groans as he follows her to the large crate the Nomad is housed in. Wonderful, he thinks to himself. This will be how they die.

 

~*~*~

 

Jolene climbs out the Nomad, a wide grin stretched across her face. By the gods, but that was fun. More fun than she’s had in a long time. She holds back a laugh as her brother wavers on his feet, clutching his stomach. She may have gone a little wild with the driving on purpose, zig-zagging through the sand faster than she needed to, simply to listen to Daniel complain.

“SAM, how do we make this shit work?” she asks, looking up at the tall, weird ass structure.

“There appear to be glyphs nearby. Perhaps using the scanner would help?”

Daniel perks up at this, curiosity spreading across his face in an instant. “Glyphs? Really? Fascinating. Several ancient Earth peoples used something similar for their language. Is this their form of communication or is it simply coding for their machines?” He pauses for a moment, searching for his notepad. “I need to copy these down,” he mumbles, already clearly lost in thought as he begins scanning and sketching.

Liam raises an eyebrow before shaking his head. “He knows SAM will keep a record of all that, right?”

Jo shrugs. “Yeah, it’s an archaeologist thing. They like to keep notes in the field or whatever.” She chuckles a moment before continuing. She deepens her voice to imitate her brother. “You never know when data might be erased, noona, but I can keep my notes with me forever."

“I can hear you, you know,” Daniel mutters as he begins to climb. “Why do they hide these symbols so far up? Were they a flying species? Or just very athletic?”

Jolene uses her jumpjet to race her brother to the top. “It’s like alien _Frogger_ , Danny! Wheeeee,” she says with a giggle.

He rolls his eyes as he slowly makes his way up to her. “Must you compare everything to a video game? Nobody plays those ancient platformers but you.”

Liam laughs from down below. “ _Frogger_? I think I played that once as a kid. Seemed kinda silly,” he says.

“Of course you did,” Daniel mutters, a frown on his face as he studies the glyph. “What strange patterns. I wonder what it means…. SAM, any idea?”

“I do not have enough data yet, Dr. Ryder, but if the Pathfinder inputs these glyphs in the right order on the console below, then it should become operational.”

Jolene grins and takes a running leap off the side of the structure. She can feel the adrenaline rushing through her entire body as she falls. It’s a thrill she hasn’t felt in a long time and she hadn't realized how much she missed it before now. She activates her jump jets just in time to keep from hurting herself when she lands and bursts into laughter when she notices her brother carefully taking the “stairs” back down.

She places her hand over the strange console, furrowing her brow in concentration. This is what dad did, right before he died. She shivers as she remembers being thrown over the cliff, her helmet cracked as she struggles to breathe.

“Building connection. I apologize for any discomfort. The system seems unstable.”

Her father’s face as he takes off his own helmet is still clear in her mind. She still can’t believe he sacrificed his life for hers. She hadn’t realized he cared that much. This must have been what happened when her dad tried doing this. And it had killed him. He had been so brave, so strong, and he still died. What hope did she have of surviving it?

SAM speaks again, this time through their private channel. “Your father interfaced directly with the atmosphere processor. That proved extremely hazardous. We are trying a different method. I have learned, Ryder. I will not allow the same mistake to happen twice.” He continues, but the rest is said to the whole crew. “These structures could reveal the control center. System remains unstable. Doubling our power input might accelerate the process.”

“Here goes nothing then,” she says, placing her hand over the console again.

She pushes down the fear that makes her body tremble. She has no choice. She’s the only one who can do this. It has to work. It _has_ to. Please, gods, let it work.

“WAIT!” A whirl of blue crashes into her, knocking her flat on her back. She looks up into a pair of light golden eyes.

“Get off my sister,” Daniel growls, pressing his pistol to the asari’s temple.

The stranger puts her hands up slowly. “Woah, easy. You’ve come this far, just let it ride…”

Jolene rolls her eyes and shoves the asari off her. “Calm down, boys,” she says to her brother and Liam, both of whom have their guns out. She turns to look at the asari. “Is there a reason you knocked me on my ass like that?”

“I’ve been studying this tech for months. I don’t know how you activated those glyphs, but you have to let them cycle through their channels.”

Jo pauses, looking over at the console. Is that what dad did wrong? Is that why he died? Her chest is tight with pain. Something so simple. If only they had found the Nexus first, or Eos, or this asari… Her father wouldn’t have died such a pointless death. Her face feels hot, her whole body flooding with heat as she clenches her fists. Everything seems tinged red around the edges and it's hard to see. She can feel her pulse racing as she holds back a scream.

She rams a fist into the large metal whatever the hell it is, using her biotics to really slam into it. “Sonofabitch,” she mutters. Of course there's not even a dent or scratch on it.

_Don’t cry, dumbass. Don’t cry, not now. He’d be ashamed if he saw you lose it like this. Don’t fucking cry._

Jolene pushes all the hurt and rage deep, deep down and turns to look at the newcomer again.

“It’s going to be alright,” the asari says with a smile. “Trust me, okay?”

“Right,” Jo mutters. “And you are?”

“Peebee!” the asari chirps back cheerfully.

The machine suddenly whirls to life and Jo looks up at the sky. “Holy goddamn shit,” she whispers.

“System has stabilized. I’m establishing a connection.”

“It actually worked,” Daniel mutters. He turns to Peebee. “You said you’ve studied this tech for months? Do you have any field notes?”

“You bet I do,” she says, clapping her hands together in excitement.

Jolene scoffs. “Nerds,” she says, grinning at her brother.

It's not long before they realize that all the monoliths operate in the same, basic way. Jolene lets Daniel do the scanning as she hangs back a bit, lost in her own thoughts. They had promised her that this would be a fresh start. A new home for them all. She remembers sitting up with Keri, late at night, picturing lush garden planets like Eden Prime.

_Keri hums low as she lays curled in Jo's arms. Her skin is soft and she smells like home. "What made you change your mind? About Andromeda? You seemed so dead set against going."_

_Jo grunts, hesitating before answering. "You, of course. I already lost Kirrahe. I can't lose you, too," she replies, voice barely above a whisper._

_Keri presses a kiss against her cheek. "It's going to be beautiful, Jolene. A paradise. No war or hostilities. It's been so bleak here, in the Milky Way. We need this."_

Jo snorts now as she activates the final monolith. Yeah, no hostilities. Paradise. What a wonderful lie that turned out to be. How the hell did her father not account for this? He should have known better before dragging them into another damn galaxy. Now they're all going to die, light years away from their homes and families and everything. What a fucking paradise.

"Hey, Pathfinder, do you think if we get the big vault up and running, we might actually make Eos liveable?" Liam asks as they climb back into the Nomad.

How the fuck am I supposed to know? I don't have any answers. "If we keep trying, it's got to work," she replies, keeping her thoughts to herself.

"Goddamn right," Liam says, a huge grin splitting across his face.

At least somebody feels optimistic. 

~*~*~

 

Daniel looks up at the vault they're about to enter and swallows. Shit, but it's bigger than he had imagined. He's only half listening as the others discuss the long drop down. He touches the wall, curiosity bubbling inside him. What is this stuff? It's not like any material back home. Why did they build these things? It seems instead of finding answers, he's met with more and more questions with each new discovery.

Which would be wonderful, normally. If their lives weren't also in danger. 

"Only one way to find out! Ready or not, here we go. Woohooo!"

Daniel spins around in time to see his sister jump down the hole. His heart is in his throat, pulse beating rapidly beneath his skin. "Jo," he calls out, racing for the edge.

She looks up at him as she gently floats down, cushioned by some sort of gravity device. "Hey, little brother! Scare ya?"

He glares down at her, fire burning inside him. "I hate you so much, noona," he mumbles, though relief floods through him as well. "You're going to give me a heart attack before I'm thirty."

"If you paid attention, you'd have known about the gravity well," she replies with a shrug.

"Hey! Wait for me," Peebee calls out before jumping in after his sister. 

Daniel sighs as he gets to his feet. "Brat," he mutters under his breath.

Liam chuckles and claps him on the shoulder. "Come on, Doc, it's now or never, right?"

"And I'm guessing never isn't an option?" Daniel asks as he watches the man leap into the seemingly endless hole. He sighs, looking up at the ceiling a moment to collect his courage before closing his eyes and following the rest of the team into the abyss. 

Carpe diem, as they say.

 


End file.
